A few reflections on the day
Jan. 20th, 2009 06:48 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jaunthieI did indeed wind up watching a goodly chunk of the inauguration from my desk, in company with ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
hiker_chick. It was great to watch it in company, and I'm very glad she suggested it. A computer screen showing a low-resolution stream of the events isn't perhaps the most ideal way to watch history unfold, but it's not a bad way either, and there's an inherent geeky-cool factor to it that amuses me.
I'm not an overly sentimental person, and the low-resolution presentation wasn't one calculated to tug at the heartstrings, so while I found portions of the event moving, I didn't find myself moved to tears as so many others apparently were. I thought that President Obama's speech was good, that he made several important points, and effectively communicated the themes important to him. The speech was clearly intended to inspire, and I did find parts of it inspiring, or at least hopeful. I deeply appreciated the willingness to sound a somber tone about just how deep a hole we're in, and how much we're all going to have to work to get out of it. I truly believe that we all contributed to getting ourselves into this mess, and that we're all going to have to contribute to get our country out of it. I find that kind of candor refreshing, and I suspect a majority of others do, too.
As for the rest, I was pleasantly surprised by how nice the invokation was, eye-rollingly amused by the benediction, and unsurprised at the frequent references to God. It's clear that President Obama is quite religious and comfortable in his faith, but I also appreciated his "shout-outs" to people of other faiths and no faiths. I thought that Roberts' screwing up his administration of the oath was both ironic and predictable, that Aretha did far better that I had feared but still sounded like she was fighting for every note, that the poet laureate's recitation of her poem was just awful, and that John Williams' fantasia around "It's a Gift" was interesting but sounded more like Ralph Vaughan Williams than the composer of all those famous movie scores (and was an odd choice to play between Biden's swearing in and Obama's given its relatively minor key). And, of course, I found the talking heads largely unbearable.
Most of all, though, I found myself profoundly relieved that it all came off, and that we have a new President. I wish him all the best, and hope he can live up to the challenges we face as a nation. The expectations surrounding him are sky-high, nigh-impossible to live up to, but I believe he intends to try. He won't have to do much to be a better president than his predecessor; that's a very low bar to clear. However, he will have to be very lucky, work insanely hard, and be a truly extraordinary individual to be the great president that times demand. And we will all have to be very lucky and very dedicated and very willing to make the changes and difficult choices needed to turn it all around, if he (and we) are to have any real chance for success.
I believe we can. I believe that it's a genuine possibility, that we are at one of those moments in history where we have the opportunity to make big changes and do extraordinary things. Such moments are almost invariably associated with disaster or some dramatic event, and are not without risk. Such moments have to be seized upon quickly. If we can, it's going to be one heck of a ride. I think it's time to buckle up, buckle down, and get ready to dig in for the long haul.
Good luck, Mr. President, and good luck to us all.
hiker_chick. It was great to watch it in company, and I'm very glad she suggested it. A computer screen showing a low-resolution stream of the events isn't perhaps the most ideal way to watch history unfold, but it's not a bad way either, and there's an inherent geeky-cool factor to it that amuses me.I'm not an overly sentimental person, and the low-resolution presentation wasn't one calculated to tug at the heartstrings, so while I found portions of the event moving, I didn't find myself moved to tears as so many others apparently were. I thought that President Obama's speech was good, that he made several important points, and effectively communicated the themes important to him. The speech was clearly intended to inspire, and I did find parts of it inspiring, or at least hopeful. I deeply appreciated the willingness to sound a somber tone about just how deep a hole we're in, and how much we're all going to have to work to get out of it. I truly believe that we all contributed to getting ourselves into this mess, and that we're all going to have to contribute to get our country out of it. I find that kind of candor refreshing, and I suspect a majority of others do, too.
As for the rest, I was pleasantly surprised by how nice the invokation was, eye-rollingly amused by the benediction, and unsurprised at the frequent references to God. It's clear that President Obama is quite religious and comfortable in his faith, but I also appreciated his "shout-outs" to people of other faiths and no faiths. I thought that Roberts' screwing up his administration of the oath was both ironic and predictable, that Aretha did far better that I had feared but still sounded like she was fighting for every note, that the poet laureate's recitation of her poem was just awful, and that John Williams' fantasia around "It's a Gift" was interesting but sounded more like Ralph Vaughan Williams than the composer of all those famous movie scores (and was an odd choice to play between Biden's swearing in and Obama's given its relatively minor key). And, of course, I found the talking heads largely unbearable.
Most of all, though, I found myself profoundly relieved that it all came off, and that we have a new President. I wish him all the best, and hope he can live up to the challenges we face as a nation. The expectations surrounding him are sky-high, nigh-impossible to live up to, but I believe he intends to try. He won't have to do much to be a better president than his predecessor; that's a very low bar to clear. However, he will have to be very lucky, work insanely hard, and be a truly extraordinary individual to be the great president that times demand. And we will all have to be very lucky and very dedicated and very willing to make the changes and difficult choices needed to turn it all around, if he (and we) are to have any real chance for success.
I believe we can. I believe that it's a genuine possibility, that we are at one of those moments in history where we have the opportunity to make big changes and do extraordinary things. Such moments are almost invariably associated with disaster or some dramatic event, and are not without risk. Such moments have to be seized upon quickly. If we can, it's going to be one heck of a ride. I think it's time to buckle up, buckle down, and get ready to dig in for the long haul.
Good luck, Mr. President, and good luck to us all.
